Most of them will depart from Platform 4 as they shunt into Down Carriage Siding 3 at Oxford and you can't come back out into anything other that that from there.  Eventually you will be able to come back out into Platform 5 as well.

Having replayed that on Berth Maps I noted the following issues that caused that 7/8 minute delay on the 11:03 from Oxford you travelled on to Bath Spa (it reached Bristol 4 minutes late):

1)  There is an ongoing signalling issue at Oxford affecting OD2366 on the Up Oxford which means anything departing Platform 4 is now often crossed over at Hinksey South or Kennington Junction rather than at Oxford Station South Junction.  This needs resolving soon as it's been outstanding for over a month and really affects the trains that are booked to depart south from Platform 4.
2)  The train was a few minutes late out of the sidings as the previous service to use Platform 4, 2M24, the 1033 DID-BAN departed 9 minutes late at 11:00.
3)  It arrived from the sidings at 11:03 and waited for the delayed 4M55 to pass through 9 minutes late at 11:05, departing at 11:06.
4)  Though that small hold up didn't really affect it as it was following a minute or so behind a delayed CrossCountry, 1V83, the 06:23 NCL-RDG which was going ahead of it (rightly so) from Hinksey South
5)  This is where the unnecessary delay occured though as rather than immediately following 1V83, the signalling system (ARS presumably) set the road for 2L23, the 11:08 OXF-DID which was in Platform 3.  That route was quickly cancelled (overridden by the signaller presumably), but by the time that route had died out and the route for 1N59 had been set it meant it sat waiting at Hinksey South from 11:09 to 11:13 making it 8 minutes late.  It then had a pretty clear run through to Bristol.
6)  That one small signalling error also delayed 2L23 (11:08 OXF-DID) by 4 minutes and two trains coming the other way 1E36 (10:46 RDG-NCL) by 5 minutes, and 1D20 (10:23 PAD-OXF) by 3 minutes.  Finally 1O10 (08:25 MAN-BMH) caught up with 2L23 at Radley and was delayed by 5 minutes from there to Didcot.

So, minor delays, but just goes to show what one moment of a lack of optimal signalling can cause.

Thought you, and others, might appreciate that level of detail!

 
And after using the train ...

The incoming train from Bristol - the 09:08 - arrived 4 minutes late having had to wait for the platform and disgorged - at a guess - between 30 and 50 passengers before shunting. The return train also had to await a platform, and left somewhat to my surprise from platform 4, 3 minutes late then had to wait to cross over to the line towards Didcot leaving it 7 or 8 minutes late for the rest of the journey.

39 in standard class from Oxford, and no signs of huge crowds joining 1st class.  Goodly number more by the time we got to Bath Spa.  Train manager checking tickets has a word with a young lady with an expired (well expired, by the sound of things) railcard with an advance ticket. Oops; young lady was shocked at the replacement price, and I don't think the new ticket was actually sold.  She was with others and they appeared to laugh it off when the train manager was into the next carriage.

Traffic from Oxford was what I would describe as "what you might expect on a typical early day". No hoard of rail advocates (in fact I think I was the only one), lots of relatively young leisure traffic, including significant baggage - a bit touristy.  Middle of the day, school term-time, no regular buildup yet.  From Oxford it needs time to build up.  Swindon west (in this direction) it was already providing a useful service; not sure how much that is just abstraction from the services from London.  No catering - and that was announced.

Although I did not use my Interrail pass (home country days are valuable), I did look to plan it out in their app which is generally very good.   However, the train did not appear there and I was recommended a change at Didcot.  I suspect that's because it was announced so late, and it will appear in the planner in a week or two.  Connecting two major overseas tourist cities, I wonder if being missing from Interrail, Eurail and perhaps Britrail may suppress numbers until corrected.

 
Today is a day of celebration - the through train service from Bristol to Oxford is back, six days a week, running every two hours.  Until 2004, this useful service was provided by Thames Trains who were swallowed into First Great(er) Western, as were Wessex Trains and it was "optimised" away.  Twenty years ago, Wessex Trains were swallowed up too and my own local service through Melksham was reduced to unusable.  How times have changed; rail passenger number have  increased, the wider community benefit of a decent rail service is now appreciated, and this is another step towards a network service fit for passenger purpose.

Initially, Bristol to Oxford runs every 2 hours, six days a week.  Proposals are for it to run every hour - that's from May 2027.  A service that only runs every 2 hours is "thin" and will hugely benefit when it's stepped up to every hour, though if "pushed" you can make the journey already at intermediate times doing what we jokingly call the "Didcot Dance" - rushing to make tight connections or doing a slow elegant movement when they don't work.   

This "hourly for regional services" should be a minimum, and it is now commonly appreciated that the Swindon to Westbury service through Melksham should also run hourly. We celebrated a return from 2 to 8 trains each way per day from 2014 - another victory for common passenger sense.  But infrastructure and freight services mean that the service can't simply and reliably be stepped up in the same way as Bristol to Oxford.

Sunday services should - these days - be similar to those of Monday to Saturday.  But yet, GWR's staff arrangements are such that if they were to schedule such a service, it would be beyond the number of staff they have; other services are already reduced at present because of a lack of staff who volunteer to work Sundays.  And the service really should go onwards from Oxford - or at least connect - to Bletchley then Milton Keynes or Bedford.   The railway has been re-instated but it's waiting - and has been waiting far too long - for staffing issues to be resolved.

However, a celebration today of the return of a 6 day per week usable service from Oxford to Bristol.  We have waited - far - too long.  And I look forward to seeing next steps on Westbury - Swindon and Bristol - Oxford.

I live in Melksham.  What does it mean for us?   It means that, once again, sleeping at home and doing a day's work in Oxford would be practical for me; the 07:21 from Melksham connects at Chippenham, and the 17:03 from Oxford connects at Chippenham on the Wayback, with an 18:09 arrival.  On Saturday, the 08:02 connects to Oxford.  Coming back it's the dance, though.   For passengers from Melksham to Bristol the 07:21 now provides a much better connection at Chippenham, and the new 17:12 return is far better connecting back than the 17:00.   Off peak / evening peak / weekend fares are sensible. Morning peak fares are silly for historic reasons, and need sorting out, as (for the new passenger) does the difference between "not via London" and "not via Reading" tickets.  The wording "Any permitted" - itself a tautology and misleading, is not used on any tickets for this journey; there should be an "any reasonable route" standard which lets you get on the train that will get you there fastest, irrespective of where you have to change.

I am not a great one for first or last days - but I am taking the opportunity of catching the 11:03 from Oxford to Bath - a real boon between the two tourist cities (report in follow up this afternoon).  It doesn't connect onwards into Melksham, but as I'm on my way back from mainland Europe with a heavy pack, I'm doubling back at Bath onto the 272 bus that calls opposite my home; later this month, that nearer option will be gone for six months of road works in Bath. Public Transport remains a changing and developing world and it's been good to see, over the last 10 days, the good and the not-so-good elsewhere in Europe too.

While writing, what other service in our area, culled when trains were not as busy, is needed back?  How about the trains that ran until a few years ago from London to Trowbridge, Bradford-on-Avon, Bath and Bristol?  This one should be a no brainer for a joined up GBR - there are already Waterloo - Salisbury and separate Salisbury - Bristol trains running, both with class 158/159 class trains and it shouldn't be beyond the wit of the timetabling experts to join them up!

Finally, a "Thank you" to friends in the rail industry and regulation have put the Bristol to Oxford service back.  The community, long asking for this sensible move, really appreciates it.

Of late, the team at GWR have been - it seems - concentrating on the changes that are coming with GBR and - sorry - it feels like the good community relations we've had are somewhat on the back burner.  Natural perhaps as the GWR staff can no longer consult and make changes within the remaining First group term, but unanswered emails and selective data still hurt.  There would be no harm in a polite and explained "sorry - we can't".  We are seeing a greater political interest, with more feedback and follow up via MPs in those constituencies where the MP is engaged - so that helps Melksham, Chippenham, Bradford on Avon and Avoncliff, and the case for Corsham too (which this new service would call at). Across the rest of West Wilts, we feel we are on "ignore" and it is difficult to judge how to best campaign for what, I suggest, everyone wants - an improved (for both passengers and financially) service. It would be so easy, as First staff become civil servants, for them to prioritise looking good for their new bossed and for their own careers over passengers.  If any of you are reading this, we understand your plight; please understand our conundrum and help us work forward to mutual goals.